Practical guide

How to test the event door before opening: the rehearsal with test QR codes

By SOMOS DER · October 30, 2026 · 7 min read

To test the door before the event, create a test QR code for each attendee type, take the devices you will use to the exact spot of each check-in point and have the same operators who will work that day scan every case: valid, duplicate, not authorized, re-entry and printed badge. Do it at the venue and on the real network, because what fails almost never fails in the office. If you are flying in to produce the event, this is the step you cannot run from your hotel: plan it into the schedule of the day before.

Why a test in the office is not enough

Testing the system at your desk confirms that the system works. It does not confirm that your door works. What tends to fail on the day is something else: mobile signal dropping to zero in the basement where the entrance is, venue wifi that asks you to sign in on a web page before letting you browse, a light reflection on the attendee's screen, an operator who has never seen the duplicate screen and does not know what to do, or a permission loaded wrong that leaves out an entire attendee type.

That is why the rehearsal has three non negotiable conditions: at the venue, on the real network and with the operators who will be working.

Step 1: build the set of test QR codes

Register one test person for each attendee type, using the same registration link the public will use. That already tests two things: that each type's link works and that the email with the QR code and the PDF badge arrives. Use real inboxes from your team, from different providers (one Gmail, one Outlook, one corporate), to see whether any of them sends it to spam. If part of your audience will register in English, open one of the links with ?lang=en so you also see the registration page and the email they will get.

That gives you a set that should include, at a minimum:

• One QR code of each type (general, VIP, press, staff, whatever applies).
• If there are time slots with limited capacity, a QR code from two different slots, because each slot is a type of its own.
• At least one type with re-entry and one without re-entry.
• A printed badge in the size you will use, if you are printing.
• A QR code on a phone screen with low brightness and another on a phone with a scratched screen, if you have one at hand. The public arrives like that.

Step 2: go to the exact spot of each check-in point

Not the lobby, not the production office. The place where the operator will stand, with the device they will use. There, check:

• The network. Open the scanning screen and scan. If you use the venue wifi, confirm it has no sign-in portal that expires after a few hours and that it holds up with the venue full (ask the technical manager how many devices it supports). If you use mobile data, test the carriers your local team has and note which one has signal at that spot.
• The backup network. Cut the main network on purpose. PASE shows that there is no connection and lets the operator retry; measure how long it takes you to switch to the backup and scan again. That is how long the queue will stand still if it happens for real.
• The light. If entry is at night or in a dark place, test with the light there will be, not with set-up lighting. If the camera is slow to focus, add a lamp or move to a handheld scanner.
• Power. Where the nearest outlet is and whether a power strip reaches the desk.

The browser camera needs the operator's permission. According to the MDN documentation on camera access, the browser always asks for authorization the first time a page wants to use the camera, and if it is refused, the page cannot access it. In the rehearsal, each operator has to open the scanning screen on their own device and accept that permission, so the prompt does not appear for the first time with the queue already formed.

Step 3: the cases every operator has to see

Each operator scans the full set, not one each. The cases:

• Valid. The right QR code at the right point. Measure how long it takes from the moment the person shows the phone until they walk through.
• Duplicate. Scan again a QR code without re-entry that has already gone through. If you have two points, scan the same QR code at both at the same time: with anti double entry, one gets in and the other is logged as a duplicate.
• Not authorized. A general QR code at the VIP access. This confirms the permission matrix is loaded correctly.
• Re-entry. A QR code of a type with re-entry, scanned two or three times. It has to come back valid every time, and each pass has to show up in the report with day and time.
• Printed badge. If you print, scan the paper badge, not only the phone.
• Manual registration. Have the operator register someone at the door from start to finish.

After each case, ask the operator what they say to the person. The screen solves the technical part; the conversation is what needs rehearsing. With local operators and an international audience, that also means agreeing what they say in Spanish and in English. The CISA public venue credentialing guide insists on this point: whoever checks access has to know which credentials are allowed in their zone and the procedure for denying entry, with zero tolerance for letting someone through without the right credential.

Step 4: measure what you will use to decide

The rehearsal is the only moment you can measure your door without the public. Write down:

• How many people per minute each operator gets through in your real setup. Do at least ten passes in a row to get a number that is useful.
• How long the switch to the backup network takes.
• How long a manual registration and a badge print take.

With the first number and the number of people you expect at peak hour you decide whether your check-in points are enough. Do not use numbers from another event: measure yours.

Step 5: clean up before opening

Test QR codes are registrations like any other. If they stay in the system, they count in the live report and in the closing report. Before opening, note how many there are and of which type, to subtract them when you read the report and to tell the client in the closing report. Even better: register them with a name that gives them away ("TEST VIP", "TEST PRESS"), so nobody mistakes them for attendees.

When to rehearse

Ideally the day before, at the same time you will open, with the venue set up. If there is no access the day before, do it on the same day with at least two hours of margin before opening, so there is time to fix a permission or find another network. The rehearsal belongs in the checklist for the day before as the item that never gets skipped.

If an operator sees the duplicate screen for the first time with the queue in front of them, the rehearsal did not happen.

Frequently asked questions